What We Lost
by Blue Remedy
Summary: Rumor has it that a mad women has created a potion to restore lost happiness. Lucy, to escape from the threat of an arranged marriage, joins a cheerful thief named Natsu to find this potion. Through their journey across a kingdom filled with magic and colorful characters, will their sudden alliance lead to a life-long companionship? AU Rated for minor language, adult themes & ANGST
1. Chapter 1: The Start

"When you meet a man who is broken, pick him up and carry him. When you meet a woman who's broken, put her all into your arms. Cause we don't know where we come from … we don't know where we are. "

~Laurie Anderson

Sometimes when you least expect it, people will amaze you. It may not always be in a good way mind you. But when it is, we become a little more aware of ourselves. It's a scary thing, awareness. Like they say, ignorance is bliss. Putting together the pieces of the puzzle seems like a difficult task, and it is. By yourself, you'll never achieve anything.

Don't feel bad, because we need people. We need companions who will help us to be more aware. To finish the puzzle. We, as individuals, need unity. That's it. When everyone realizes this, something big is bound to happen.

Luciana sat reclined in her chamber. The young maiden was deep in thought and didn't hear her maid swing upon the large door. "Milady, your bath is drawn." The little girl said, dropping into a deep curtsy. Only the staff younger than Luciana called her that, everyone else called her by her given name. Luciana, startled by the girl, hurriedly thanked her and departed.

"Oh dear…" The maiden sighed to herself, letting her golden hair fall away from its many ribbons. As she shrugged away her garments, she turned to her bath, and held back a screech.

"Levy!" She exclaimed, covering up what she could of her naked body. Her sister giggled at the spectacle she was making and motioned for her to join in the bath. Luciana stepped lightly into the steaming water, letting out a soft moan from the feeling.

"Levy, why are you in my bath?" The girl asked quizzically. Her sister laughed once more, taking no head in that she was stark naked. The tub was big enough, sure. But Luciana knew something was wrong, as something always was when Levy snuck into her bath.

"Lucy you know very well why I'm in your tub." Levy frowned, as if hurt by the accusation.

"No, I really don't. You can stay I mean, not that you would leave even if I asked." Lucy huffed, crossing her arms over her breasts. Levy mimicked her unknowingly and blushed. Levy was a frail, slender girl; the only thing that wasn't petite about her was her brain.

Lucy on the other hand was a curvaceous young lady, known for her wild imagination and fighting spirit. She was often mistaken for the older sister by foreign dignitaries, when Levy was in actuality older. This frustrated Levy to no end.

"It's about Gajeel." Levy sighed. Lucy smirked. "When isn't it about Gajeel?" Lucy said playfully, nudging her beloved sister with her foot. Levy smiled halfheartedly.

"He… Gajeel proposed to me today. It was sweet, he got really flustered. Ended up throwing his gem at me instead of bowing, it was truly the funniest thing I've ever seen." Levy laughed, her voice resounding through the cavernous bath. Lucy couldn't help but laugh with her.

"Hm, well you accepted right?" Lucy asked. Levy beamed. "Of course! I know he has no lineage to speak of, but he's perfect otherwise." Levy told her dreamily. The smaller girl snapped back to reality and looked seriously at her sister.

"Lucy, this engagement got me thinking, I've known Gajeel for years. And we're only getting married now. And it I've been thinking-"

"Out with it Levy!" Lucy said, growing impatient. Levy looked pained, biting her lip. And all at once,

"You haven't even tried to find a suitor yet Lucy!" She hissed, water splashing around as she grabbed Lucy's shoulders.

Lucy pulled back harshly. "I don't need a suitor! I'll dance with the ribbon when I see fit." She paused, as if regretful. "I'm happy for you Levy, I am. But marriage… No. I'm not ready." She finished, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.

"It's just… I heard father and his advisors talking the other day. Don't misunderstand, I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, but I heard your name and uh…" Levy trailed off. "And?" Lucy prodded.

"They want you to get married Lucy. And soon!" Levy told her. Lucy gasped, mouth agape. "But Mother said in her will that we were both to marry whomever we wanted!" Lucy exclaimed.

Levy nodded. "Father is finally fed up with you Lucy, so much so he's getting rid of mom's rules. You know, it'd be so much easier if you didn't keep turning down suitors." Levy said, wagging her finger at Lucy. Lucy fiddled nervously.

"Prince Loke seemed to like me well enough." Lucy mumbled. Levy deadpanned. "Yeah, he did. Until you pushed him into the canal."

"He wouldn't stop hitting on me! It was infuriating and indecent." Lucy retorted, stepping out of the bath. "Where are you going?" Levy questioned. Lucy shrugged. "I'm not yet sure."

Lucy, after putting on her nightclothes, stepped outside. It was summer time in Fiore, and the nights were perfect for wandering. Lucy headed down the staircase, the summer nights were also perfect for midnight snacking.

Scratch that, today was Wednesday, the scullery maids would be cleaning late in kitchen today. Not that Lucy didn't like the kitchen workers; she just didn't want to deal with them at the moment. She needed time to think.

"If I were to wed…." She mumbled softly to herself. "It'd have to be to someone I care about. Gajeel is scary, but I know he cares about Levy." She smiled suddenly. "I'm jealous of her really. She has a friend to talk to. All I have is my books..." She trailed off. It's true. Levy and Lucy had practically grown up in the castle's library. It was their only source of entertainment.

"Maybe I could leave for a while… I could take a break before father sends in another troop of suitors to 'woe' me." She laughed at her own predicament.

She found herself outside, not caring if anyone saw her. Most civilians were probably asleep by now. But suddenly, a shout of rage.

"Oi oi! Let go of me damn it!" It startled her so much she jumped back into a hedge. Wait a minute…

Lucy pulled some twigs out of her hair and peeked through the shrub. Her eyes widened. Four guards were encircling a man, trying to arrest him no doubt, and failing tremendously at it.

Flames erupted spontaneously. Lucy blinked, dazed for a moment by the bright light. One guard lay on the ground, another was reeling from impact, and the other two were trying to pat the fire off their jackets. It would have been hilarious had Lucy not been terrified. What kind of beast was capable of such things?!

She saw the man now, grinning widely, sharp canines glowing in the moonlight. He had a shock of pink hair, and was dressed strangely. Lucy yelped as his dark, expressive eyes were suddenly on her.

"C'mon!" He urgently told her, grabbing her wrist and pulling her right through the hedge. He scrambled to help her to her feet and took off at full speed, unfortunately still clutching her wrist.

"Hey!-Stop!-Let me go! - _Stop_!" Lucy shouted as he jerked her around corners, her nightgown billowing around after her. Well obviously he isn't going to listen to me, Lucy thought. So instead of trying to stop, she wrapped her arms around him and tackled him to the ground where they skidded in a tangle of limbs.

She ended up lying on top of him. Lucy, so mortified by the position she was in, couldn't move. The man however, didn't look phased in the slightest.

"Good evening!" He said, with a sparkling grin. Lucy finally gained enough composure to roll away from this strange man. His grin faltered. "Huh? Did I scare you? Aren't you escaping the royal guard too?" He asked.

Lucy's jaw went slack. He didn't know who she was, and to top it all off he was a criminal! But that wasn't really the shocking part. It was that he was just so honest in all his actions. It was refreshing to say the least, as Lucy spent most of her time around fake politicians.

He sat cross-legged, facing toward her. "I'm Natsu of Fairy Tail. Hey, are you on a mission in the capital too?" He asked curiously. Lucy's eyes widened. Fairy Tail!? That was the number one thieves' guild in Fiore! They meant business, and the throne was constantly on the lookout for them.

"You're a fugitive?! Why would you just go around announcing that idiot?!" Lucy yelled at him, standing up and brushing off her gown. She felt at ease around this strange man. Maybe because he didn't seem all that threatening.

In any case, Natsu smiled again at her. "It's the only title I have silly, what else am I going to call myself?" She blushed, how in the world…? He just turned around and made _her_ look like the fool!

Lucy caught herself smiling and promptly wiped it off her face. "Well then. I am Luciana, daughter of Jude." She said smoothly. She held out her hand to shake, he stared at it, confused, but then grabbed it and pulled himself up.

"Nice to meetcha Luce!" He said, his face too close to hers for comfort. She stuttered, "W-why were the guards ch-chasing you?" It was weird, him calling her Luce set something off inside her, making her feel warm inside.

"Tch, hell if I know. I can't even show my face in this town anymore without the flatfoots coming after me. I don't know why…" He said, crossing his arms with a scowl. Lucy laughed.

"It's because of your hair weirdo! You're too noticeable!" She chuckled. He frowned at her. "No, I don't think it's that." Lucy deadpanned.

"Wait, you weren't running from the guards then?" Natsu asked. Lucy was appalled. "Do I _look_ like a thief?!" She shouted.

"Oi oi calm down. You don't look like a thief, you look like a weirdo." He said, looking proud that he came to this conclusion.

Before she could come up with a witty rebuttal, he piped up again.

"Do you want to come with me on my mission, Luce?" He said, dark eyes boring into her, looking through any wall she might put up. Damn, this guy had no boundaries.

She had been considering leaving but… with this complete stranger. She tried to look this situation over analytically, but it was really difficult when Natsu was so distracting with, well all of him was kind of distracting.

"What's your mission?" The words came out before I could stop them. His face lit up, and I knew I wouldn't be winning this battle.

"I'm going to find a healer who lives in the West Woods. Porlyusica, Recluse of the Western Woods is her name. She's a hermit, and supposedly mad." He gestured for me to come closer, and whispered softly into my ear,

"But there are rumors that she's created a potion that can restore lost happiness."

Lost happiness?

She had lost happiness. Her mother's death was a big one. Lucy suddenly wondered what kind of lost happiness this seemingly eternally happy boy had.

"Well… okay. But the West Woods are all the way across the kingdom! How will we get there? I don't suppose you have a carriage." Lucy questioned, watching Natsu comically turn green at the sound of carriage.

"Uh, well, me and carriages don't get along so well. We're walking. It'll take awhile, but I'm sure it'll fun if you're there!" He grinned at her. Lucy blushed madly.

"W-why do you want me to go with you? You could pick anyone to follow you around the kingdom, or one of your guild members. Why me?" She asked him. He didn't even think about it.

"'Cause you're pretty sweet, you know? I can tell, you have a good heart." He smiled in earnest at her, and she looked away in embarrassment. What was up with this guy?! He made her feel… weird.

"Thanks, Natsu." She finally replied. He smiled quickly and took off with her again. She hollered all the way, disgruntled civilians waking up to the shrill sound of:

"Natsu slow down!"

**That's right! I started a new fic! (maniacal laughter) This one I plan on making longer. Just sit tight and suck it up because the introduction chapter is always the worst and you know it. If anything is confusing feel free to yell at me. Okay so review or whatever and the next chapter will be up in a jiffy!**


	2. Chapter 2: You're Staying With Me

**Thank you for the reviews guys! I'm very excited to get into the meat of this story. I decided to update real early, but don't think that's going to happen very often. Because it might not. Any road, here's chapter two~!**

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Natsu took her to a ratty old fort he liked to call, "Home base!" He seemed very proud of it, so Lucy didn't press him on the fact that there was mold everywhere and three holes in the roof.

"Why are we here Natsu?" she asked, sweeping a cobweb out her way. This place needed a serious scrubbing. There was one bed, no windows, and a pit in the middle of the room probably used for fires.

"This is home base Lucy; Fairy Tail has places like this all over Fiore!" He explained, as if trying to teach a child. Lucy yelped. "You mean that thieves' guild has hideouts in the capital?" She hissed, clutching her hair. Natsu looked confused by her reaction.

"Well, yeah. Where else are we supposed to store our loot when the guards are out? I know it's not the nicest place, but home base is home base." He seemed to stare off into the distance, and Lucy was brought back to the question of why Natsu wanted that mad woman's potion.

She snapped out of her reverie to see Natsu moving toward her. "N-Natsu?" She stuttered.

"Move." Was all he said, and then shooed her away. She realized that she was standing on something he needed. The pink haired thief pulled back the old rug she was standing on. He pulled back a couple of floorboards to reveal a small, hollowed out place under the building.

Lucy was surprised; she didn't think Fairy Tail thought through things enough to build things like this. She mentally berated herself; of course Fairy Tail is smart enough to build hideouts. The throne had underestimated them.

Her new found respect for the thief was smashed as his popped out of the wall in the floor and he yelled, "Gray! That bastard!" He angrily turned away and patted the dust off his trousers.

"What happened?" Lucy said, genuinely curious. Natsu scratched the back off his head, as if suddenly nervous. "Mm… Gray is my guild mate. The bastard knew I was in town and took off with my share of the profits we made last week." Lucy, confused, asked, "Why do we need your profits?"

He turned to her. "Well if we're going to make our way across the kingdom, we'll need money right? Try to keep up Luce."

"Natsu! We can't use your stolen money anyway, it isn't right! We'll have to get money some other way." She said, crossing her arms for affect.

…

"We could do missions." He spoke slowly, like the concept was new to him. "Missions?" Lucy asked. He nodded insistently. "Sometimes we do missions that don't involve stealing. They're not as fun, but I think they'll suit you right Luce." He grinned at her again.

Wait, so he was suggesting they did regular jobs? That sounded… alright, actually. Lucy smiled, and a determined look settled into her eyes.

"Okay. But I must tell my sister, and maybe we can get some food too." Natsu perked up at the sound of food.

"Yosh! Let's go Lucy! Where do you live?" He said excitedly. Lucy slapped a hand to her forehead. "Seriously Natsu? I live in the castle you idiot!" Did he still not understand?

"Oh, are you a maid or something? Have you seen the princesses? I hear they're both real pretty."

Lucy blushed, maybe he did know and he was just playing with her…? "I-" She started. Why was she so nervous?

"I'm one of the princesses Natsu," He reeled back with a comical "Uwahhhh?!" she sighed. "Well c'mon! We have to leave soon!" He said, grabbing her hand and rushing towards the castle.

"Wait, Natsu! Aren't you afraid I'll turn you in or something?" He turned to her, like the thought just occurred that Lucy had every right to turn him in to her father.

"Nope. Like I said Luce, you have a good heart. You wouldn't turn me in, we're friends." He told her in earnest. Lucy's heart leapt pathetically at Natsu calling her a friend. "Besides, that would be mean."

Lucy cackled loudly. "You're right, that _would_ be mean." How in world did he turn into this innocent, childlike character? Lucy decided then and there she would do what she could to figure out Natsu. A difficult task indeed.

"Just stay hidden. I'll be back soon enough, so don't break anything!" She told him, planting him on the ground and hurrying through a back door.

Natsu sat cross-legged with his head in his hands and sighed. "She's really something…" He scowled then and flung himself onto the grass. "But she wants to do normal missions…" He grinned. "I'm sure she's up for of it though, she just doesn't know what she's capable of yet."

…

"What do you mean you're leaving?" Levy cried, her bottom lip trembling. Lucy hated to do this to her sister, she really did. "Levy, please, it's not a big deal." She waved her hands around trying to calm her sister.

"This is a complete stranger Lucy, he could be dangerous!" Levy exclaimed. Lucy bit her lip, as she had left out the part about him being a part of a thieves' guild.

"He's a good guy Levy, I know it. If anything bad happens a can always pull out the 'help I'm royalty' card." She reassured her. Levy sniffed, admittedly very worried about her sister. "Lucy, you've never done the damsel in distress act. It isn't like you to ask for help."

"Oh, Levy…" Lucy hugged her sister. She didn't know what to say, so she kept silent until Levy pulled away.

"You'll make it back in time for the wedding right?" Levy cried, laughing at her own pettiness. Lucy laughed with her, and promised she would be. Levy was proud of her sister for taking a risk and making a friend. Even if it wasn't in that order. Levy could see how Lucy's eyes lit up when she talked about the man named Natsu. Even if Levy had never met him, the way Lucy showed it, he must have been pretty great.

After a tearful farewell, Lucy raced off to her chamber. She filled a sack with a few of her many possessions. Lucy faltered as she remembered her book. She placed it lovingly at the top of her bag. The book had been her mother's, and was one of the only things left to Lucy in her mother's will.

"Whaddya need a book for?" Lucy jumped backwards, running into a wardrobe. "Natsu!" She shrieked.

He was perched on her balcony, the moonlight making his roguish features stand out. "Never mind that, we need to get to the kitchen-"

"Oh, I was already there. Turns out the scullery maids love to give free food to wandering travelers." He gave a cheeky grin.

"But you're not a wandering traveler." Lucy told him. He shook his head. "Now I am. We're partners now Luce, and when we're partners, I won't steal stuff." He stood up and walked toward her. "I've made my decision, you're staying with me."

He smiled, his deep eyes catching the moonlight. She felt like the air had been punched out of her lungs. He wanted to be near her that badly? That was… sweet.

"I almost forgot! There were spare clothes at home base. You can't travel in those skirts Lucy. Besides, I think they'll fit." Lucy blushed at the gift and mumbled a thanks.

They left that night. Walking until they reached a farm. Much to Lucy's dismay, they slept in the barn's straw that night. And even more to Lucy's dismay, she found Natsu snuggled up to her when she woke up.

"Lucy?! Why'd you punch me? Wow, your face is really red!"

"Sh-shut up!"

…

They walked down a beaten dirt road. Natsu kicked up rocks and Lucy enjoyed the feeling of sun on her skin. They were heading west, and the nearest town would be Clover.

"Say Natsu, what's it like being a thief?" Lucy wondered out loud. Natsu kicked a rock into a nearby puddle.

"Heh, it's not as bad as you think Luce. We, Fairy Tail I mean, only steal from rich folk who won't even miss their money. We just aren't very, uh, subtle about it. That's why the throne is all over us."

"Fairy Tail must be pretty wealthy then…" Lucy mumbled. Natsu's keen ears however heard her.

"Not even close! We give most of our profits to people who help us, people who are in alliance with Fairy Tail. Hm, but the throne doesn't know that."

She kept silent. They gave to the poor. She really did misjudge his guild. Actually, they probably really helped the economy by dispersing money like that.

"That's a very kind thing to do Natsu." I smiled. His ears turned red and he looked away. "Yeah, well, it's all a part of bring in Fairy Tail."

She stopped. "Ah, Natsu, a town." He looked up. The town of Clover. "Well," He said, cracking his knuckles. "Let's find us some work!"

She liked the sound of that. Lucy was very excited to start her adventure. Every mile she got further away from her father, the freer she felt. The only thing Lucy cared about anymore was the wellbeing of her sister. But she was in good hands now.

It was only logical that Lucy needed someone to care for. Levy and Lucy had always been independent, but after their mother died, Lucy took on motherly characteristics.

But was Natsu the person she needed to take care of now? She looked to him with kind eyes, and he smirked, calling her a weirdo. Maybe Natsu could take care of her too, as unlikely as that seemed at this point.

Nearing the town gates, Natsu stopped, holding his arm out in front of Lucy. He had a very serious look on his face, his eyebrows knitted. He scowled, his sharp canines flashing.

"Natsu, what is it?"

"Stay back Lucy."

It happened all at once. A swarm of people were upon them. Lucy saw Natsu jump in head of her and punch a man into a tree with a loud _crack_. His fists were flaming, and Lucy was in momentary awe.

A man roughly grabbed her from behind. She cried in defiance, and Natsu was there in a flash, his arms wrapped protectively around her. She looked up at him. There was a fiery kind of passion in his eyes. Was he really a cheery goofball two minutes ago? A tremor wracked through her as she felt his warmth.

He grinned at her. "I'll be right back." And he was off again. Lucy couldn't help the smile that worked its way onto her face. He was really amazing wasn't he?

Lucy looked around, there were seven men and two women scattered around Natsu and herself in an unconscious heap.

"Hehe, I went a little overboard huh?" He said, hands behind his head. Lucy fumed, how was he so carefree? She was still shaking and she didn't even do anything. I couldn't do anything, she thought.

"Are you okay? I lost track of you for a moment there." He said then, his face serious. "Yeah, yeah I'm alright. You don't need to protect me because I'm a princess you know. Some girls can take care of themselves." She turned away, immediately regretting her words.

He placed his hand on her shoulder. "I didn't protect you because you're a princess or a girl. Those things are trivial. I protected you 'cause you're my partner ya weirdo." She turned around, surprise tears suddenly misting her eyes. Somewhere, deep in her heart, she knew Natsu would say something like that. He was pure.

This fact alone made her edgy. No one has ever been this nice to her for no reason. Lucy liked to think that everything happened for a reason. That is, until her mother died. But Natsu must have some reason for wanting to be her partner, right? Maybe she was just insecure. At any rate, she didn't want to think of Natsu as a bad guy.

"Who are these guys anyway…?" She pondered, blinking away those stupid tears. Natsu casually kicked one of the guys over. "Phantom Lord. I thought they might be here. They're a no good thieves' guild Luce, they'll steal from anyone. Not to mention they harm their targets."

Lucy shivered. "Why'd they attack us?" Natsu thought about it for a moment. "Well, it could be because I'm from Fairy Tail. Phantom doesn't like Fairy Tail. Then again, they probably control all the roadways in this town, so they'll attack anyone passing by. Or they're just idiots. The whole guild fell apart after Gajeel and Juvia left you know."

Lucy stopped. "Gajeel?" She exclaimed. "He was part of a thieves' guild?!" Natsu looked at her, perplexed. "Yeah, do you know the jerk?" Lucy laughed. "He's just marrying my sister my sister is all."

"Seriously?! Good for that metal jerk!" He laughed to himself, like a proud brother. Just like that, he went from cheerful to scary strong to heartfelt to cheerful again. What a dynamic personality! How'd he manage that?

Lucy shook her head at Natsu. "We should find a job soon Natsu, it's going to get dark out." She squinted at the horizon and sun, gauging it to be around six.

"Yosh! Let's go, I'm starving!" He took off, with Lucy running after him.

The inside of the town was quiet, eerily so. The cobblestone streets had worn and cracked over years of mistreatment. Weeds sprout from everywhere like, ah, weeds. Shadows flickered past cracked windows and doors sitting on broken hinges.

Lucy unknowingly clung to Natsu. He didn't really care.

"Where… Where is everyone?" Lucy whispered. "Why are you whispering? They're probably all inside."

A bottle rolled out from an open door. Horrified whispers could be heard. Natsu and Lucy stopped; the tension in the air was smothering them.

A little boy burst outside. He was barefoot, with no shirt and a bandage wrapped around his head. He was sobbing, and ran to hug Lucy's legs.

"Please heroes, help us! The thieves are going kill us all!" He blubbered. Lucy looked to Natsu in exasperation, he wore a similar look. Natsu knelt down and patted the kid's head.

"Hey, we'll definitely help you. But you have to be strong okay? You'll need courage to beat these guys. Can you show us where the others are?" Natsu asked the boy in a low, gentle voice. The boy stared at him with wide eyes, he smiled, tears streaming down his face.

The boy high tailed it back to the house. "Guys! The heroes agreed to help us!" He ran back out and hollered, "Everyone! Come outside!"

Slowly, people trickled outside. Frightened, but something hopeful in their eyes. A woman stepped out from the crowd, her head held high.

"I'm the mayor here. Are you truly here to help us heroes?" The woman said gravely. Lucy's hours of diplomat lessons kicked in and she stepped up to the plate.

"My lady, we didn't come here to help this village, but seeing the damages here, we've decided to help if you'll tell us how." Lucy told them. Murmuring spread like wildfire through the crowd, until the woman held her hand up to indicate silence.

"We are all grateful for your help. Come with me directly." She turned, the people making a pathway for her, adults and children alike staring at Natsu and Lucy.

Natsu bumped Lucy with his arm. "That was great Luce; we'll get rid of Phantom for sure!" He whispered to her encouragingly. She smiled at the compliment.

The pair followed the mayor into a rickety old house no different from the others. Lucy was apprehensive, but tried to take after Natsu's example of fearlessnesses.

Lucy nudged Natsu with her arm. "Does this count as our first mission?" He thought about it and smiled.

"I guess it does!"

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**Is it weird that I added Phantom Lord without Gajeel or Juvia? Well, it'll be fine. Review or something. I think I feed off your guys' opinions. Weird. Anyway, tell me if you like how it's going and I'll be updating in a jiffy~!**


	3. Chapter 3: The Glass Rose of Doom

**[MONTSTER TRUCK RALLY ANNOUNCER VOICE] CH-CH-CH CHAPTER NEW NEW NEW CHAPTER!**

**I hope you don't mind but I'm switching to first person view for this chapter because honestly it's exhausting writing in third person and it's just not as deep you know? If it's bad you can yell at me to go back to third person 'aight?**

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MISSION 1: TAKE DOWN PHANTOM!

They sat down on two of the three wooden chairs in the room. Of those, Natsu's promptly fell apart in a cloud of dust. I snickered and picked him up, while the mayor tried to hold back a smile.

"Ahem. Well I'll introduce myself then. I am Mayor Adira, daughter of Adiranine of Clover." She said, ending with a low, courteous bow. She seemed very worn; the stress of running a town had aged her.

I stood next, and stopped. Was I supposed to say my own title? Or just a different name? I wasn't ashamed of my tile, oh no. But would they send me back if they knew?

"I am Lucy, daughter of Layla, daughter of Basilia." I also bowed, and was proud of myself for using my mother's name in my title instead of my father's for a change. And now I wasn't lying either, and she didn't know who I was.

Natsu was next. "And I'm Natsu of, I mean, Natsu, son of Igneel." He didn't bow in his hasty words and I berated myself for choosing such an embarrassing partner. Of course he wouldn't say that he's of a thieves' guild, but he shouldn't be so conspicuous about it!

She nodded. "As you can see, the guild Phantom Lord has taken over this town. The throne knew they were here," She glanced at Lucy, like she knew. "But Phantom cut off communications, and no one outside of town knows how bad it really is. Except you two that is."

"They've threatened to kill us, starting with the younger ones." She continued. "But you're here now. And I must tell you, the people of Clover are tougher than they look. When Phantom first took over, we fought hard." Her face took on a rough expression, her eyes misty and her mouth pulled back into a tight line.

"Jose told us he liked to make deals. If we could find his rose, they would leave the town." Confused, I turned to Natsu, who definitely had no clue what was going on, but bore a serious look anyway.

"We haven't an inkling what that could mean, but we looked all over for any kind of rose. Every day we searched, while Jose looked down upon us, gaining joy from our wasted efforts. Eventually we gave up, and now the town has gone to shambles." She turned her head away, as if disgraced. Natsu stood up suddenly.

"We'll get that rose lady! Even if I have to beat it out of Jose!" He took off. I was worried that he was really going after Jose. I quickly said thank you to the mayor and sped off to catch up with Natsu.

"What was _that_?" I scolded him. He scowled at me. "Phantom's cronies are going to wake up any minute to tell Jose we're here. If that happens, this mission's gonna get a whole lot messier." Natsu told me. I snapped my jaw shut. I kind of expected Natsu to rush off without a plan. Granted he didn't have a plan yet, but at least he had some idea of what he was doing.

"What do you think Jose meant by rose?" I asked, walking beside Natsu. He shrugged. "I don't know, I never met the guy." I tripped over a broken bottle and frowned at the level of disaster in this town.

"No rose could ever grow here…" I murmured.

We ended up in front of town hall, the only building we've seen that wasn't in complete shambles.

"That must be where Jose is." I said, Natsu nodded and kicked the door open. Jose was sitting at a desk, his feet kicked up. A cigar hung haphazardly from his mouth and the area surrounding him was littered with empty bottles and dishes. He looked hung over, and his posture was definitely not what I pictured Phantom Lord's guild master to look like.

He glanced at us without taking heed of the broken door. "Who the hell are you kids?" He drawled lazily. Natsu jeered. "Rose. Where is it?" It wasn't a question.

Jose raised his eyebrows. "Ah, I see. You think you're here to save the town right? Well I'll tell you what I told those idiots." He took a long drag of his cigar and I felt like vomiting at how he overdramatized everything.

"If you can find my rose, Phantom Lord will leave this town." He held his hands out in mock defeat. No wonder no one has found it yet, he was so vague about it.

Natsu took a step forward. "And if you lay a hand on me, the deal is off." Jose told us. "Coward…" I growled.

"C'mon Luce." Natsu said, turning in his heel. I faltered. "Natsu? What are we doing?" He tilted his head and grinned.

"We're gonna find that rose!" He grinned, seething with determination. "Even if that's means I can't punch him…" He muttered.

I giggled. He was almost cute when he got all worked up. I crossed my arms as we walked away from the town hall. "I don't think the rose is anywhere around here Natsu. You heard the mayor, they've looked everywhere. It has to be somewhere the townsfolk can't look." Mine and Natsu's eyes met, and we looked back at the town hall.

"You don't think Jose has the rose on him do you?" I whispered to Natsu. We stepped into a back alleyway and he leaned in close. "That would make sense why he said we couldn't touch him. But as stupid as he looks, Jose is really smart from what my Master has told me about him. He wouldn't keep it on his person. We need a plan Lucy." He told me.

I grinned. "Right!"

…

The plan was to finally be set in motion. Natsu would somehow distract Jose and get him out of the building, while I swooped in and looked for the rose inside the town hall. The plan would've worked well, except Jose was fast asleep when Natsu entered the building.

When he came running back out, I thought he had lit off a bomb. He quickly told me that they could sneak in while he was asleep. I was skeptical of the plan, but we could always fall back on the original one, right?

Natsu and I crept back into the town hall, taking care not to trip over the filth on the floor. Jose was snoring loudly, and I was sweating bullets.

I tiptoed around, looking for anything suspicious. Natsu was in front of Jose's desk, peering around. I was behind him on my hands and knees searching under the desk.

"Lucy," Natsu whispered. I banged my head loudly on the desk as my automatic response. I rolled around holding my head for a moment. "What?" I hissed.

Jose abruptly stopped snoring. I froze. I couldn't see Natsu but I assume he froze too.

"Oh, it's just you freak, what do you want? And where's that pretty blonde friend of yours? Ditch 'er already eh?" He cackled obnoxiously and took a swig of something fowl smelling.

I crouched to the point where Natsu could see me, but Jose was still unaware. We locked eyes, and the message was clear: time to improvise.

Natsu chuckled awkwardly. "Heh, yeah! I gave up on finding the rose. You've hidden the thing too well Jose, I've gotta hand it to you, you deserve this town." He held out his hands and grinned at Jose like it was nothing. I tried to keep myself from gawking at all the brown nosing Natsu was doing.

Jose rubbed his stubbly chin. "You're right kid, I do deserve this town. Ya know, you're not such a brat after all are you?" Jose started the stand up then, and I almost squeaked in the scramble not to be seen by the man.

He meandered in a drunken stupor to Natsu and clapped him on the shoulder. "Here kid, lemme show you this place. It's pretty nice, the numbskulls here barely even put up a fight!" He babbled, leading Natsu to show him a marvelously interesting stain on the wall.

Natsu glanced back at me and gave a thumbs up behind Jose's back, flashing a grin. I sighed in relief. If Natsu could keep this up, maybe I could find the rose. Who knew Natsu was such a good schmoozer?

I started to move out from under the desk when something felt off. The floor underneath me, was it… hollow?

I felt along the edges and, low and behold, the floorboards were fake. I tugged at my hair in frustration and excitement. Why didn't I think of this earlier? Natsu had the same fake floor back at home base. There, it was a trapdoor under the floorboards. I opened it slowly, flinching as it creaked slightly.

Peeking over the desk, I saw Natsu making grand hand gestures at the columns and Jose making equally grand hand gestures, albeit somewhat clumsily.

Inhaling, I dropped into pitch blackness.

And hit a wall. Literally and figuratively. From what I could tell the drop was about seven feet. I had tried to roll onto my side, where I hit the wall. Groaning, I found myself shivering. The air down there was cold and stale. I longed for Natsu to be with me. He was always surprisingly warm… I felt myself blush, getting goose bumps thinking about him like that. Forcing myself to think otherwise, I felt blindly around what I deduced to be an old emergency shelter.

Natsu would've made some fire for light by now- snap out of it Lucy! Stop thinking like that! I shook my head. Blind as a bat, I felt around, my boots crunching unevenly on the gravely ground.

I hit a wooden door. To my surprise, it was unlocked. Upon further examination, the lock itself had been broken. Jose's work I should think.

A bright light hit me as I shoved the heavy door open. I gasped. Gold. Sparkling, shimmering gold. There were mounds of gold everywhere, reflecting the rays from a light source that came from a round hole in the ceiling.

And at the center of it, sat a crystal rose. It gleamed brilliantly, and I cried out in joy. "This must be it!" I said, running to it. I squinted up to where the light was coming from. It came down in a perfect circle. How odd.

I grabbed the rose, accidently pricking my finger and frowning as a drop of my blood fell to the floor. I thought about grabbing some of that gold, but my gut told me I shouldn't. Besides, I had to make sure Jose hadn't killed Natsu. Or vice versa.

Something tugged on my foot. A string? No, I realized in horror. A tripwire. The door slammed shut with a heavy thud. I pounded on it, screaming. There was no handle on this side of the door. I was trapped.

I slid down to the floor, ready to accept defeat. And right when I thought we had won… I looked at the rose in scorn. The twinkle of its delicate petals mocking me. I was about the throw the thing when I stopped to see it gleam again in the sunlight.

The sunlight! I scrambled up to my feet and climbed clumsily to the top of a gold pile. Maybe I could somehow climb up…?

I folded the rose up in two layers of cloth and stuffed it in my bag. I tried jumping up and bracing myself against the smooth stones the light was entering through and promptly fell on my butt. I groaned, it was no use.

I stood up again, shaking and on the verge of tears. "Somebody! Help me!" My voice resounded through the cavernous entrance. I sighed pitifully.

"Hello?" I small voice called down. My eyes shot open and I squinted up once again. A dark shadow was looming over the hole and blocking some of my light.

"Hello! Please help me out of here!" I shouted up. The person hesitated. "Are you a spirit or something?" The voice was a woman's.

"What? No! I'm just- just help me please!" I stammered, unsure how to respond to being called a ghost. The woman left and I felt despair enter my heart. What if she was one of Jose's cronies?

A rope fell on my head. "Well don't just stand there! Grab on!" I beamed and hung on for my salvation.

The outside light momentarily blinded me as I ungracefully fell over the wall I was being pulled over. "Bless you ma'am." I bowed to the woman. She was nearing middle-aged. She was thick in muscles and had strawberry red hair pulled back behind a bandanna. She was the picture of a hard worker.

"Rose of Clover, now what were you doing in that old well?" I jumped back in surprise. The irony of her name wasn't lost on me in the slightest. "Well?" I looked back at the hole, which was indeed a well now that I looked at it.

"I was getting Jose's rose." I told the lady. She gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. "Did you- did you really my Lady?!" Her eyes watered. "Can you bring me to town hall? I have no idea where I am." I told her, the authoritative voice I held slipping. I didn't care. I don't think Rose did either.

She nodded eagerly and took me down a dirt road, hollering all the way. "People! People she got the rose! The Lady has the rose!" People peeked out of their homes and before I knew it, the whole town of Clover was following behind us in a mob.

"Go on Milady, take our town back!" Rose pushed me forward. I looked back and saw the mayor walk outside into the rally of people. The throng moved away as she picked her way through. "Mayor Adira!" I waved.

"Did you find the rose hero?" I was discouraged at the mayor calling me a hero. Then again, I never corrected her. I nodded. "Will you bring the rose to Jose?" She said desperately.

Growing up in the castle, taking all those dignitary lessons, they really helped me in the long run. Mother told me that the key to ruling a kingdom was compassion and intelligence, but never at the same time. Only the best rulers can do that. So the decision clicked quickly.

"You must come with me Mayor. We must make a statement, with you, not I, ending this." The mayor looked at me in shock and awe, and smiled at me.

"Jose!" I called loudly. The mob quieted. It was deadly silent. I held my breath as Jose stumbled out of the town hall confusedly. "What's this?!" He warbled. Natsu peeked his head out and beamed seeing me at the front of the crowd. A weight lifted off my chest knowing he was unharmed.

"Jose, we've found your rose. You and Phantom Lord must leave this town." Adira told Jose in a booming voice. Jose's eyes bulged and his face contorted into a look of disbelief and disgust. His cigar fell from his mouth.

"You couldn't have!" He laughed. "Au contraire stupid. Lucy found your rose; now get the hell outta this town." He said, bringing a closed fist close to Jose's face. He whipped his head around to see me unwrap the rose. Jose, realized he'd been duped, was at a loss for words.

"I-I was sick of this town anyway!" Jose stuttered. That was about the time his lackeys stumbled back into town.

"We'll leave, but mark my words; I'm not done with you two." He pointed at Natsu, then to me. Natsu looked at me and cocked his head with a grin. My mouth fell into a similar grin as I realized what he wanted.

"Natsu!" I called, throwing the rose up into the air. It gleamed on last time in the noon day sun before Natsu jumped up and smashed it with a flaming fist and roar.

Jose fell to his knees ungracefully. "My magic! My magic was in that rose you fool!" He sobbed as he went through the shattered pieces of his rose and dignity.

"Boss!" One of his guild members called. They came rushing in to take him away, the townsfolk throwing various rotten vegetables at them. Natsu leapt down the stairs and tackled me into a hug.

"We did it!" He cried. We laughed, and I remembered the gold underneath the town. I grabbed Natsu's hands. "C'mere, I have to show you something amazing."

It turns out that all that gold was Phantom Lord's savings, AKA, a lot of the stuff they stole indecently. I was starting to understand the differences in these thieves' guilds.

Mayor Adira started crying when she saw the gold. She said they would use it to revitalize the town to its former glory, and then some. She wanted to give some of the riches to Natsu and me, but Natsu flat out refused, calling it dirty money. I guess Adira understood, I sure didn't. Now we still didn't have money.

We did however accept the food and beds given to us to use for the night. Natsu and I lay in our separate beds that night. I was beat, but something seemed to be on Natsu's mind.

"Hey Luce," He whispered in the dark.

"Yes?" I answered.

"How'd you guess the rose was underground and not some plant?" I smiled. I would've pegged it on dumb luck really, but an idea was itching me.

"A rose could never grow in these conditions Natsu. You've seen the town, it's a mess." He paused.

"You know Lucy, sometimes you're really smart. I mean, you're really weird too, but I'm glad you're my partner."

"Thanks Natsu…" I mumbled, glad he couldn't see the blush on my face. The urge to go over there and hug him found me, but I instead turned my mind to tomorrow. What kind of adventure would we find next? I squirmed just thinking about it.

Tomorrow was a day of new possibilities, to make history and change things. And I couldn't wait.

MISSION 1: TAKE DOWN PHANTOM-COMPLETE!

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**WEEEEE I'M DONE! How was it guys? There's going to be one mission per chapter, or maybe two chapters depending on how long it gets. Was the first person okay? Okay okay I'll leave but review cause I like opinions ay.**


	4. Chapter 4: The Dramatic Proposal!

**Back by popular demand: first person point of view! Which is a relief because I like it much more than third person. A user on here asked me where in the world Happy is, but don't worry! I haven't forgotten him! (I plan on writing things to make you cry ohoho) So without further ado, A THING!**

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MISSION TWO: THE DRAMATIC PROPOSAL!

"Natsu, why do you get to pick the chapter titles?"

"Lucy! Quick breaking the fourth wall!"

I walked on ahead, my belly full of food that the people of Clover shoved down our throats. Not that I minded. I looked back, my hands casually placed behind my head. She was hugging people and waving and being the general hero she was.

Lucy.

A gentle breeze blew past as she ran to catch up with me. Her golden hair was tousled and her eyes were sparkling and deep. I grinned. "Ready Luce?"

She nodded and we waved one last time to the people of Clover. Walking side by side, I heard Lucy sigh. "That was fun Natsu, but it was scary back there too. And that Jose wasn't pleasant either…"

I raised an eyebrow. "So?" I asked her. She looked disgruntled. "Well I just thought, is this what you go through doing missions for your guild?" She looked up at me with those big eyes.

"Hm, I guess it is!"

I underestimated Lucy a little. I knew she was cut out for this life, but I didn't think she'd be this much help. Although I hate to admit it, I couldn't have helped that town by myself without punching Jose in the face.

I watched as she fumbled with the map that would lead us to the next town. She was pretty. Not outwardly so, but in the little things she did.

Like when her eyes lit up when she was excited. Or how she kept tucking locks of hair behind her ear. And even how her face scrunched up when she was concentrating. Those things. And lots of other things like that.

I know titles don't make the person, but she deserved to be called a princess. How come I didn't notice it when I first saw her? That white dress and gold hair billowing around in the summer night, she looked like a goddess.

But it isn't like a picked her for her pretty face. She was very determined, as many nobles are. But she was also kind and smart, and those go a long way nowadays.

"What town is closest?" I asked nonchalantly. She flipped the map around. "Uhh... Pendonna. I think." She looked up then at the cloudy sky. "I think it might rain today."

I mean, she wasn't exactly perfect. I cackled as she tripped over a rock and rolled into the ditch. No, definitely not perfect. But she was interesting. And I was curious.

She glared at me as I helped her up. "You didn't need to laugh!" She said, stomping off. She made me laugh. I wonder why that is? I haven't felt this curious about a person since…

My heart ached painfully with the memory of her. _Lisanna. _I ran to catch up with Lucy, now was not the time for tender memories.

"Listen, Luce, I'm sorry." I said in a low voice. She stopped and turned. "Natsu…?" She blushed. "Just try to be more careful next time; you're no good to me dead!" I forced a smile, which Lucy immediately saw through. How'd she do that? But before she could say anything, the rain came.

She shrieked and ran back to me, flailing stupidly all the way. I chuckled at her, not really minding the rain. Lucy scowled at me. "Whatever are you laughing for? We'll be soaked soon!"

I smiled at her. "Luce, have you ever walked with someone in the rain and gotten soaked?" I asked her. She looked up at me quizzically. "No… I haven't." She ventured.

"Then how do you know you won't like it?" I grinned. I'm impulsive, there I said it. I don't think that's a bad thing, Lucy never seemed to like it though.

I hooked her arm through mine and ran full speed up a hill. Laughing, I enjoyed the feeling of the cool rain running down my face. I looked to Lucy. She was bewildered, and her hair was plastered to her face. But she was laughing, we were both laughing. Just two people running in the rain.

How perfect.

As we reached the top of the hill, a town could be seen glowing in the distance. "Natsu!" She cried. "There's Pendonna!" Jolts of electricity ran through me as I felt her arm slide down mine and find my hand. She giggled, and started running downhill enthusiastically.

I laughed. She was leading me now. Panting and wet, we entered the town of Pendonna. A quiet town, known mostly for its scholars and inventors. And as I recall, their only means of income was selling new trinkets and information to the throne. I've only ever been there once, and it was to intercept a merchant's caravan. The people here were of equal status. I liked that.

Lucy and I jumped away from each other noticing that we were still holding hands. Most people were inside, trying to hide from the rain no doubt. Every now and then someone exited a shop and sprinted off to the nearest dry area.

"Natsu, running in the rain is fun and all, but we need to dry off." Lucy said, leaning towards me. I nodded, and we went into the nearest building that wasn't locked.

Which just happened to be a jeweler's. Slightly disoriented and numb, we stumbled in.

"Th-that one! Yes, I'm grateful to you, thank you again." There was a man with black hair holding a silver band and shaking in his boots, and I don't believe it was from the rain. He had a strange accent, and was wearing a poncho. For some reason I wanted a poncho too. I shook my head, Lucy's weirdness was catching.

"Of course, but are you feeling well, Mr. Connell? You look positively green." The jeweler, a short and wide man with spectacles asked.

"Qu-quite. I just don't know how to propose..." He turned quickly then and ran full on into me. The ring clattered to the ground. "Oh no!" The man cried.

I spotted the ring and gave it to the man. I think he was on the verge of tears, but he straightened up quickly. "Thanks, you really saved me." The man smiled, and I smiled back. "You going to propose? Good for you!" I clapped him on the back nonchalantly. He flinched. "I-I don't know. I was planning on it, but I don't know if I can. She's the greatest person I've ever met, but I don't know if she'll accept me..." The man looked down dejectedly.

I looked to Lucy; she didn't seem to know what to do. I didn't either for that matter. The man suddenly sprang back up. "Will you please help me to propose?! I'll pay you! I promise! I just need help!" The man pleaded.

"But we've only just met you!" Lucy exclaimed, water droplets flying every which way. I thought about it. My mind liked the thought of getting paid, and it didn't seem too hard of a mission. Besides, we could help this guy!

"Okay, we'll help. What's your name?" I said, crossing my arms decisively. The man's eyes sparkled with relief and I heard Lucy wail exasperatedly behind me.

"Alzack Connell of Pendonna, it's a pleasure meeting you."

…

The rain cleared up.

"Ow, Lucy- Calm down!"

Unfortunately, Lucy was in a bad mood now.

"Natsu," She seethed. "How are we supposed to do this mission? We don't know this guy!" She stamped her foot, still steaming.

"Lucy, a mission is a mission always right? All we have to do is help this poor shmuck propose to the love of his life and we're off. It's cake Luce."

She huffed. "Well alright then… But don't go deciding the missions without me anymore!" She shouted. Really, I don't know how she changed emotions so quickly. It must be exhausting.

She left to find Alzack, and I quickly dried off my clothes by rising my body temperature. "Young man," The jeweler called to me. "What's up Gramps?" I asked casually.

"That girl you were with, you two wouldn't happen to be married would you? Or betrothed?" I felt my face heat up, which is odd because heat usually isn't an issue for me.

"L-Lucy? No way! Are you blind Gramps? We're only partners!" I tried to explain to him. He chuckled.

"Partners indeed. I can clearly see you have a comfortable relationship with that young lady. Can't you?"

I paused, unsure how to go on further. "What are you implying Gramps?" He smiled a wise smile.

"Only that you should keep that girl close. But I don't need to tell you that, you obviously know she's important to you." I felt my ears heat up, absolutely sure my face was stained red.

"Whatever Gramps, I'm leaving." I went to the back of the jewelers to find a cistern filled with today's rain. I splashed the cool rain water on my face and ran a hand through my hair. "C'mon, get a grip already Natsu…" Of course Lucy was important to me, I knew that. I knew that. But _why_ was she important to me?

Does there always have to be a reason why we want to be around people? Or are feelings too complicated of a thing to pick apart? Did it really matter _why_ Lucy was important to me? Maybe. Probably. But all I knew for sure was, she was important _now_. Who cares why I felt that way? Not me. And I can only afford to live in the present anyway.

…

That Alzack fella brought us to his home on the outskirts of town. The first thing I noticed was all the guns that lined the walls. "Ah, Bisca and I use gun magic, purely for recreational purposes! Eheh..." He mumbled awkwardly. Lucy didn't seem to notice anything wrong, but I felt there was something this guy wasn't telling us.

We all sat on a lumpy old loveseat. Those things are built for two people mind you, so Lucy had to shift around to a point where she was constantly touching me. She didn't mind I think.

Lucy and I told our titles, and Alzack was eager to begin. I felt that we could trust him, and maybe Lucy was starting to feel that way too.

"To begin, Bisca and I have been together since we were kids. We lived at the same orphanage, and ran away together when we were ten." He spoke quickly, like he held no control over what came out of his mouth.

"We crossed the border to Fiore shortly after, where we traveled for a while. We ended up here, in Pendonna, and-" He gulped. "I can't think of anyone else I'd rather spend my life with." I looked to Lucy, and she was eating up the whole sob story. Not that I thought he was lying, but I wouldn't sympathize with him until I figured out what he was hiding.

"What do you do for money Alzack?" I questioned. He blanked, and paled. "Well I- we- uhh…" He scratched the back of his head. "Look, me and Bisca aren't bad people. But we do what we have to to get by."

This was taking way too long. I grabbed his poncho. "Out with it!" I commanded. "Natsu!" I felt Lucy pull me away.

"We're freelance thieves! There, I said it. But we've never hurt anyone, honestly."He held his hand to his heart. I laughed.

"Is that all?" He looked at me in surprise. "You… won't turn us in?" I looked to Lucy; she was trying not to laugh. "Of course not Al, I'm a thief myself. A pretty good one I might add. I'm from Fairy Tail." I told him.

Alzack's jaw dropped, and his eyes wandered to Lucy. "And her?!" He pointed. "What? No! She's a princess of this country." Lucy laughed then too.

"A princess and a thief will help me to propose?!" He said, clutching his hair. He smiled then. "This will work out perfectly." Me and Lucy gave him a thumbs up, and we got to work.

What Alzack really needed was reassurance that Bisca would say yes. The thing is, we've never met this Bisca. So in lieu of that, we tried giving Alzack pointers on how to go about proposing. I couldn't contribute much, but Lucy did great showing off her leadership capabilities. I didn't like it when she did that. As helpful as she was, she was different. She looked too noble, you know, stand up straight, head high, and walk without using your hips, stupid stuff like that. But the worst part was the hard edge her eyes took on when Lucy went into leadership mode. It was almost scary.

He spruced up a little and we were off. Alzack and Bisca were supposed to meet up at some café today. Alzack, the poor klutz, kept tripping on his own feet on the way there.

Bisca was already there when we arrived. She was dressed as oddly as Alzack, and had long green hair. I wonder if that was her natural hair color. Alzack tried to back out at the last minute and dive into the bushes, but Lucy and I were prepared to throw him into the damn café.

Lucy and I sat at a table behind Bisca. Alzack sat down and said sorry for being late. They kept throwing awkward glances at each other and blushing without talking. It was painful to watch.

The servers must've thought we looked odd, two people having a not-so-much staring contest while two more people at a different table watched them like a hawk.

"Bisca-"

"Al-"

They said together, as if on cue. "We have movement!" I whispered to Lucy. We peered over our menus, stealthy-like.

"Sorry, you go first."

"No no, you go."

Over at our table, Lucy and I groaned in unison. This frustration could be used as a new form of torture. We gestured erratically to Alzack for him to go on. For some reason he didn't understand. You can imagine me and Lucy pointing and silently screaming at Bisca. Realization finally punched him in the face and Lucy and I slid to the floor in exhaustion.

"Bisca, I have something very important to ask you." Alzack proclaimed, standing up. Lucy and I sprang back to life, grabbing our menus to shield our idiotic smiles.

"Actually Alzack, I have to ask you something more important." Bisca also stood. Alzack was taken aback.

"No, this is probably more important Bis-"

"Alzack, we should get married."

…

"_What_?!" Lucy and I slammed our menus down and shouted. Bisca turned to look at our shocked faces. "Al, who are those people?" She asked.

"Gah, well..." He stuttered. "I employed them to help me, ah, propose to you… But it seems you've beaten me to the punch." He smiled and blushed. Bisca's hands went to cover her face as she turned red.

"Y-you mean you accept, right?" She sputtered. He nodded, and they embraced. Lucy was crying and I hooted. The whole café had gotten caught up in the spectacle and joined in the celebration.

Bisca found us later and thanked us. "I suppose my Alzack told you we're thieves right? He never was good at keeping secrets." We nodded. "Well," I told her. "If you guys ever want a home, you can always join Fairy Tail. We'd be happy to have you." Bisca smiled and thanked us gratefully with a low bow.

Alzack paid us, as he promised. Honestly though, he was crying so many tears of joy I almost didn't want to take the guy's money.

That night we rented a room with two beds, as per Lucy's insistent request. I don't know why she doesn't want me in her bed. All I'm doing is sleeping right? What's so bad about getting a good night's sleep?

Well for any reason, she still kicked me out of her bed late that night, loudly whispering about how they paid for two beds so I should use mine. Something like that.

She eventually moved to my bed when I wouldn't stay on the floor, and I followed her into bed. She yelled and hopped back to her bed. It became kind of like a game of tag only with beds and all I wanted to do was sleep.

And sleep did come. I woke up in hanging halfway off Lucy's bed with Lucy curled up with a blanket on the floor. She was snoring softly. I smiled. She was so weird.

I picked her up and put her where I had been on the mattress. She snuggled in to the fleeting warmth the blankets held. As I turned to leave, she loosely grabbed my wrist. "Lucy…?"

She pulled me close; I could feel her warm breath on my neck. I gulped, feeling goose bumps rise where her hand touched me. "Natsu…" She said sleepily.

"If you try to sleep in my bed again I'll kick you all the way back to Fairy Tail." There was a sudden vehemence in her voice, and then she passed out again. I let out a breath of air I didn't know I was holding and grinned.

Yeah. She was definitely weird.

MISSION TWO: THE DRAMATIC PROPOSAL-COMPLETE!

**For reference I wrote most of this at 4am so if anything looks weird, that's drowsy me writing that. Okay good night.**


	5. Chapter 5: Jailbird Lucy

**'Sup my people! Let's get down to business! This chapter's point of view will change periodically from Lucy to Natsu and back. Tell me if that works 'kay? Heh heh, this'll be a treat. Sorry this chapter is late. Well, it's not really late, but later than usual anyway.**

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MISSION THREE: JAILBIRD LUCY

The cell door slammed shut. She whimpered and pressed her face to the bars. "Natsu, help me out of here." She looked confused, and rightfully so.

Lucy had just been thrown in jail.

"I'll get you outta there Lucy, don't you worry. Just don't get in any more trouble while I'm gone!" I grinned and she cried, "Look who's talking! And how could I possibly get in more trouble?! I didn't even do anything Natsu!"

"I know you didn't Luce, it's just a misunderstanding is all. I'll find the loser who really did do the crime and make him take your place in there." I smiled, and she looked reassured. "Thanks Natsu." She moaned thankfully, hugging her elbows. I unwrapped the blanket from my bag and handed it to her through the bars.

"This won't take long." I grinned and exited the jailhouse. I was still angry with myself for letting Lucy get arrested in the first place. She even had to make up a name for the guards, as it would be trouble if it got out that the princess of this country was formally arrested.

I really should've been there. I was tying up the loose ends of our last job and the next thing I knew, Lucy's was screaming for me somewhere in the market. It's safe to say I was there quickly.

Apparently Lucy was thrown in the slammer on charges of fraud. Which is weird because I'm always with Lucy and she didn't swindle anyone that I'm aware of. She could probably pull it off if she wanted to, she'd make a good actress. But it isn't in her personality to want to trick people.

I went to find the guards who arrested her, telling myself I probably shouldn't punch them in the face. They were just doing their job, right?

I asked the man on duty if I see the items that were taken off Lucy. The guard was skeptical, but he was a younger guy, and I think he was intimidated by me. I can't blame him. A set of keys, her whip, and a birthstone necklace.

A scent different than Lucy's hit me. I sniffed her things while ignoring the guard's slightly baffled expression.

It was the necklace. The necklace didn't smell at all like Lucy. I was instantly suspicious.

The guard wasn't watching me and near to dozing off. Probably from all that mead the guards are known to drink. I slipped the birthstone in my pocket, the strange smell still stuck in my nostrils.

I told Lucy I wouldn't steal when we were together, but we weren't physically together now, so it didn't count right? It seemed like sound logic to me.

I went into an alleyway and took out the birthstone. I grimaced at the thing without realizing it. Some unlucky soul lost their birthstone… You see, Fiore is a land of many customs. And one of those customs is the birthstones.

A long time ago the throne was given a gift of millions of jewels from a neighboring country for helping them with their civil war. The Queen back then decided to share them with her people, and since then, everyone in Fiore was given a birthstone by someone from the royal family personally.

They aren't worth much, since there's so many of them. I never really cared about them, but people are very fond of their birthstones for some reason. And I felt bad, just a little, for the person who lost the damn thing.

I shook my head and brought the necklace to my nose. I sniffed the air and, yes there it was, a faint trail, but a trail nonetheless.

I took off towards the market and skirted around the edges. The scent would get lost in of crowd of that many people. I felt jittery, knowing that if I couldn't do this I'd have to break Lucy out of jail. I wanted to kick myself for caring so much, and told myself to hurry up.

…

Trying to sleep was out of the question. Not because the place was filthy or that Natsu was on a wild goose chase, probably destroying the town. No, it wasn't that. Natsu could do fine on his own.

It was that someone had framed me for a crime. Maybe it _was _only a misunderstanding. My gut told me differently though. But why would somebody set me up? Was it to save themselves, or did they want me, personally, in jail?

I hated being in this situation, but I trusted Natsu to get to the bottom of it. I snuggled deeper into his blanket, inhaling the smoky scent he always carried around. I liked that wood fire smell, it reminded me of summer.

I kicked off my shoes and swaddled myself with the comforter, deciding that maybe sleep maybe wasn't such a bad idea. Perhaps when I woke up Natsu would be there smiling and saying: "Told ya I'd be right back!"

…

It was started to get dark. You know the kind of dark where shadows start to slant in a strange manner. I picked up the pace, jumping around in an overgrown field.

The trail led me to an abandoned looking military outpost right outside of town. My pace picked up as the smell got stronger until I was running. I kicked the door open. There sat the source of the smell. It was a young man, not much older than me. He was obviously a noble by the snobbish way he looked down his nose at me. Something was definitely wrong. He looked like a cat that just caught a mouse.

"You-" I began, but was interrupted by ten guards rushing me, coming from other doors I hadn't noticed in the dim lighting. A general, by the look of the medals on his uniform, walked up to me.

"Natsu Dragneel of Fairy Tail I presume." He said, his voice was low and practiced.

"Speaking," I ground out.

He seemed to be a man I would've respected if his guards weren't presently trying to throttle me.

"This young lord informed my guard of your whereabouts, thief. You have a very high bounty for someone so young. You're going to jail now, boy." And with that he turned away. I got the impression that he felt pity for me. I didn't want his pity though; I was fuming at the moment.

Well, Lucy wasn't going to be very happy about this.

…

My head snapped up as the cell door groaned open. My jaw dropped.

"Hey Luce," He smiled. "I got arrested." How was he so carefree about it? The guards left and I stood up and punched him in the arm.

"You idiot! What are we supposed to do now?!" I yelled. He frowned. "Hey I tried to help didn't I?" I deflated and sank back to the cot. He followed me shortly after.

"Sorry Lucy, I didn't mean to, really." I eased a little at his apology and wrapped the blanket around me again. "How did you get arrested anyway?" I said offhandedly.

He let his head fall back and hit the wall. "I got ambushed. Some lordling recognized me in the last town and told the guards. Nothing great."

Oh. Well then the arrest had nothing to do with me. Those fraud charges must have been a cover up to lure Natsu.

"Well why did they arrest _me_ then?" I questioned. He shrugged. "I don't know. Probably because they realized you're my accomplice." He pulled a gem out of his pocket. "They knew I would follow the scent of this birthstone, and that's where they caught me, the sneaky bastards…" He trailed off.

I raised an eyebrow. "Hey Natsu, how'd you learn to smell so well?" He laughed. "Lucy, you're so weird. You don't learn to smell, you just do."

…

I knew what she meant. It's fun to tease her though. "What kind of magic do you use anyway Natsu?" She asked. I looked at her, confused and momentarily stunned as to why she wanted to know about me.

No one wanted to know about me.

I grinned. "I use fire dragon slayer magic; I learned it from my dad Igneel." I saw her eyes widen. "You're a dragon slayer?!" She exclaimed.

I smiled proudly. "Yep!" She seemed pondered that for a moment, absently chewing on her lip.

"I've read about dragon slayers, there aren't many of them left because that particular magic is only taught by dragons themselves." She looked up at me, as if asking for an answer. I shifted around a little, a little frightened about how Lucy would react to my words.

"Igneel, my dad, is a dragon. I mean, not my blood father, but he raised me. He took me in and made me strong."

…

A hard look settled in Natsu's eyes. I didn't like that seriousness; it wasn't very becoming of him. "That's…" He flinched at my voice. "Amazing." I finished. He looked to me again, a small smile slowly turned into a grin that split his face.

"No kidding!" He laughed. The hardness left his eyes and was replaced with what I think was relief. How odd. But weren't dragons extinct? Obviously not, since Natsu was taught by one. Maybe I'll ask him about it sooner or later.

"You seem like a mage Luce, do you know magic?" I snapped back to the present and nodded excitedly. Frowning, I remembered my keys had been confiscated.

"Yeah… Yeah I use celestial spirit magic with my gate keys. My mother taught it to me. I would show you my keys, but they were taken when I was arrested." I let my head fall on my knees.

"We'll get your keys back Luce, and then you can show me your key guys!"

"They're not key guys, they're spirits!"

…

I rarely told people about Igneel, and all his dragon glory. And when I did, people rarely believed me. So what made Lucy different? We've only been together for a few weeks, and she already trusts me more than she should. Is it us being partners that makes her trust me?

Really, sometimes I'm not sure whether or not she's smart. She's intelligent enough to know about dragons, but then again, she's foolish enough to trust a thief she met at random. Maybe she just generally trusts everyone she meets.

In which case, she really would be a fool.

Lucy yawned and scooted closer to me. I glimpsed her birthstone hanging on a chain between her breasts, and suddenly my hand was down her shirt.

"N-Natsu!" She yelped and turned red. I looked at her quizzically. "I just wanted see your birthstone," My cheeks colored as I remembered that girls don't like their chests being touched. "S-sorry." I added quickly.

Lucy looked down her shirt, as if it just occurred to her that she had a birthstone. "Why do you want to see this old thing?" She took off the chain, the green chunk of jewel twinkling softly in the moonlight.

"That lordling left his birthstone so I could follow him, and I just thought that I've never seen yours." She didn't seem to understand; in all honesty I didn't really understand it either. But she handed me the thing anyway, her hand brushing mine and making my skin tingle.

…

After being horrified by Natsu reaching down my blouse, he asked for my birthstone. This guy couldn't be any more dynamic huh?

I pulled off the chain and let him look at it. Something that looked like longing passed over his face. He was hunched over, carefully, delicately inspecting my birthstone. I felt my mouth open in a bout of curiosity for this.

I'd never seen Natsu touch something so tenderly before. Usually he's rough and anxious, so this was something new and potentially hazardous.

"I never understood why these things are so great. They aren't worth anything, they're nothing special." My eyes widened. "Not special, are you joking Natsu?" He swiveled to face me, and I mimicked him till our knees were touching.

"Natsu, birthstones have very little monetary value, that's true, but they have a greater sentimental value." He leaned in close with eager eyes.

"Birthstones are given to everyone in the kingdom because of the symbolism. It symbolizes a citizens' individuality, no matter if they're a lord or a farmer or a fool. They're used in lots of ceremonies, and represent the heart and courage of a Fiore-born person."

"Everyone has dreams Natsu, and in this kingdom, the jewel symbolizes that everyone gets a fair chance at those dreams."

We locked eyes, our foreheads almost touching, huddled over the birthstone like it was a newborn lamb. There was a kind of light those deep eyes that I had never seen before.

"Natsu… where is your birthstone?" I dread the answer, for fear my presumption was correct. I didn't want to be right about this.

…

I couldn't breathe. My heart felt like it was up in my throat.

"I don't have a birthstone." I finally choked out. Lucy didn't look surprised. She chewed on her lip. Maybe she was anticipating this.

"Igneel found me in the woods when I just a baby. My parents didn't want me; obviously they wouldn't travel all the way to the capital to get a birthstone when they didn't want me." I closed my eyes and pressed the heels of my hands to them, lowering my head.

I flinched feeling Lucy's hand on my shoulder. I look up, and she's smiling. Why is she smiling?

"It's okay Natsu; you don't need a birthstone…" She said, trying to say something helpful. I scratched the back of my head nervously. "Look, it's alright Lucy. Just because everyone else in the kingdom has one, doesn't mean I need one."

…

Oh. Now I get it.

It wasn't even about the birthstone.

Natsu didn't feel accepted. Not having a birthstone like everyone else made Natsu feel like… like an outcast. I felt tears spring up and blur my vision. Natsu was such a carefree person; one wouldn't think he held so many tragedies in himself.

There was something childlike in his wanting a birthstone. He never said it outright, but it wasn't in his character to do so anyway.

"Take mine," I blurted. He looked up at me with a mix of sadness and disbelief.

"What?" He asked, recoiling away. I sat up straighter; hoping the darkness of the night would shield the fact that my face was red.

"You can have mine, so you have a birthstone." He looked at me skeptically. "It's… not so great, for me anyway. It's only a rock really. I have something more dear to me."

"Oh?" He asked. I nodded, and an alarm went off in my head telling me Natsu avoided my offer. I tugged at the ribbon and let my hair fall.

…

Her hand went for the blue ribbon that always held up her hair. Golden locks fell around her shoulders and for a moment I couldn't find the words to speak.

The ribbon was worn and frayed around the edges. Why would someone who can afford such luxury keep a dingy old ribbon?

"Natsu, this ribbon is the last gift my mother gave me. She died not even a week after I turned seven." She looked like she was gagging on her own nostalgia. I couldn't decide whether to touch her or make a mad dash for the door.

"And it's much more precious to me than some silly birthstone." She turned her head away, and my senses snapped back into working order.

"Lucy, I can't take that thing anyway, it's yours!" I fumbled to shove the necklace at her. She looked like she was going to argue, but frowned instead.

"Alright…"

I sighed. "I don't need one Lucy, honest." I grinned, and went over to the cell door. "Natsu? What are you doing?" She asked.

I looked back at her smiled mischievously. "It's high time we break outta here, Luce." She tilted her head, confused.

"How?"

…

Unless Natsu was going to break open the door, I don't know what he was doing. Even if he could break open the door, it would wake up the guards in the next room over.

He cackled maniacally and pulled out a key. I blanked. "I swiped the key from the guard when they threw me in here, pretty clever huh?" I furiously punched him in the arm. "Idiot! You said you wouldn't steal!"

He shrugged. "If I hadn't we would be heading for the capital tomorrow to see the king and probably the executioner. Well, you probably wouldn't be killed; you're the King's daughter after all."

Where was he going with these ramblings? I had to wonder what went through that mind of his.

"That is, if we stayed here, you would be home by tomorrow." There it was again. He kept saying we. He probably didn't even realize how much that meant to me. He looked sad suddenly, at the mention of me leaving our team of two.

Well, no. I couldn't leave him now. At first, I felt obligated to stay near him, and I still do. But something changed. I _want _to be near him now. I want to travel with him and see his dream is accomplished. As much as I missed home, I don't think I could leave Natsu if I tried.

I shook my head. "No, we're continuing on to the West Woods." He grinned and started to unlock the door. It opened painfully loud in this quiet jailhouse.

"Natsu," I whispered as we went to get my things from confiscation. "Why did we wait so long to get out of there?"

He chuckled softly at me. "Lucy, we couldn't break out in broad daylight." He swiped my whip and keys, where I returned them gratefully to my belt. After hesitation, he threw the birthstone in the confiscation chest. What a noble thief. "We had to wait until these numbskulls were asleep."

We. I laughed. We were a team. Was it really just a short time ago that we held my birthstone, and told tearful stories of our past? It seemed like such a long time ago already, what with us laughing and smiling again.

The cool night air hit me, and we quickly went off to find the nearest farmhouse. "Natsu, there was a barn back there."

He nodded. "Yeah, but that farm wasn't in alliance with Fairy Tail –a lot of places are- It would be too risky to sleep there. You should know that Lucy, you're a runaway convict now!" He smiled, as if he'd broken out of jail many times before, and I wouldn't put it past him.

For some reason it never occurred to me that I was a runaway. I didn't do anything wrong after all, except sheltering a wanted criminal. But Natsu was my friend, if I ever got arrested again; I know he'd help me.

I felt calm around him. Even though we were in danger a lot, I felt calm. Not the kind of boring calm I had in the castle, but he kind of calm that comes from being in a fight and knowing you'll win. It's an exhilarating kind of calm.

I thought back to when I tried to give Natsu my birthstone back in that jail cell. I blushed a little, wondering if Natsu knew that a person proposes marriage by giving away their birthstone. That's not what I wanted to say by doing that, I just wanted him to have it.

What was that supposed to mean? Was my subconscious trying to tell me something?

* * *

**Hello Hello! How was that? What did you think of the birthstones? I want you guys to tell me what I'm doing right and wrong 'kay? This chapter was kinda fluffy, so there'll be less of it next chapter I think. A person can only take so much fluff before their eyeballs pop out.**


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